REV.  J.  ADAMS' 


sviioaiu 


ON   THE   LATE 


£I.IAS  HORRY,  £8Q. 


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En^aveAW  J  B  Lonjfa£re_froni  a  MiniaUire  iy  CFiazcr. 


>Ji^ 


AN 

SVLOGiriW, 

PRONOUNCED  23d  JANUARY,  1835, 

In  the  Chapel  of  the  College  of  Charleston, 

BEFORE 

THE   TRUSTEES,  FACIJI.TY  AND   STUDENTS; 

OH 

THE   LIFE   AND  CHARACTER 

OF  THE   LATE 

£]LIAS   HORRY,   Esq. 


ByRev.  J.  ADAMS, 

PRESIDENT  OF   THE   COLLSGE   OF   CHARLESTON,   S.   CAROLINA: 
AND  (EX-OFFICIO)   HORRY   PROFESSOR  OF    MORAL   AND    POLITICAL   PHILOSOPHY. 


"  The  memory  of  such  an  act,  will  not  pass  away  with  our  transitory  existence.  Ordi- 
aarily,  the  fruits  of  benevolence  perish  with  their  immediate  appropriation, — but  in  thif 
instance,  they  will  be  enjoyed  by  the  living,  and  be  preserved  in  their  original  bloom  and 
freshness,  for  future  ages.  As  long  as  literature  and  science,  and  the  improvement  of  the 
minds  and  morals  of  the  rising  generation  shall  be  cultivated  among  us,  the  name  of  the 
distinguished  patron  and  promoter  of  these  inestimable  objects,  will  be  gratefully  associated 
with  them." — Resolution  introduced  to  the  Board  of  Trustees  by  the  Hon.  William 
Drayton,  and  unanimously  approved  12th  October,  1828. 


PUBLISHED   BY  THE  AUTHOR, 

PRINTED  BY  A.  E.  MILLER, 

No.  4  Broad-street, 

Charles  ion. 

.1835. 


£ri.ooiU]ii. 


#f- 


Mn  no  single  age  of  the  world,  has  the  stock  of  living  merit  been 
very  great.  Among  the  hundreds  of  millions,  of  which  each 
o-eneration  of  our  race  has  consisted,  there  have  been  compara- 
tively very  few,  who  have  suitably  improved  their  talents,  or 
who  have  discharged  the  full  measure  of  duty  appropriate  to  the 
spheres  in  which  they  moved,  and  exacted  by  the  relations  which 
they  sustained  in  life.  The  number  is  still  less,  who  have  con- 
tributed their  labours  and  exertions  for  the  benefit  of  mankind, 
and  who,  on  leaving  the  world,  have  left  any  fruit  of  their 
labours,  by  which,  those  coming  after  them,  might  be  enlarged 
in  understanding,  increased  in  knowledge,  strengthened  in  virtue, 
or  otherwise  improved  in  their  capacities  for  reflection  and  action. 
Of  those  who  have  been  raised  above  the  ordinary  lot  of  being 
born,  of  living  a  few  years,  of  dying,  and  of  being  forgotten, 
quite  as  many  have  been  distinguished  for  the  evil  which  they 
have  done,  as  for  the  good  which  they  have  achieved,  in  their 
day  and  generation. 

We  must  resort,  then,  to  the  records  of  the  past,  and  bring- 
within  our  estimate,  the  merits  of  those  who  have  lived  and  died 
before  our  times,  if  we  wish  to  make  ourselves  acquainted  with 
the  real  stock  of  merit,  to  which  our  race  is  justly  entitled.  We 
who  are  now  living,  and  those  who  have  lived  and  died  before 
us,  compose  but  one  family;  all  having  common  sympathies, 
common  interests  and  a  common  destiny.  The  moral  and 
intellectual  riches  of  that  part  of  the  human  family  which  has 
gone  before  us,  has  descended  as  an  inheritance  to  enrich  our- 
selves. The  great  fountain  of  human  mei'it,  lies  beyond  the 
confines  of  this  life,  where  the  prejudices  and  passions  which  are 
accustomed  to  discolour  and  distort  all  the  objects  presented  to 
them  on  this  side  of  the  grave,  cannot  invade  or  approach  it. 
Nor  when  mankind  are  thus  collectively  viewed,  in  the  records, 
which  preceding  ages  have  left,  of  their  labours  and  virtues,  is 
the  store  of  merit,  which  may  be  claimed,  inconsiderable.    Some 


ages  and  many  countries,  it  is  true,  have  been  barren  in  this  res- 
pect,  and  all  our  collected  records  are  mere  fragments  of  what 
has   been;   yet   still,   it  has  been  steadily  accumulating  from 
age  to  age,   and  is  not  only  suflBcient  to  silence  those  who  have 
advanced  degrading  views  of  human  nature,  but  also  to  encourage 
our  hearts  and  enliven  our  hopes  respectmg  the  future  prospects 
of  mankind,  as  the  nations  of  the  earth  shall  come  to  be  more 
and  more  affected  by  a  more  general  diffusion  of  knowledge,  by 
free  institutions,    and  especially  by  the  elevating  influence  of 
Christianity.     To  multiply  and  perfect  the  records,  in  which 
alone  the  labours  and  virtues  so  beneficial  to  mankind  may  be 
preserved,  may,  therefore,  be  regarded  equally,  as  one  of  the 
highest  of  individual  duties,  and  one  of  the  inestimable  blessings 
winch  hterature  is  fitted  to  confer  on  those  nations  and  states  by 
which  it  is  resjjected  and  cultivated.     And  when  we  consider, 
that  the  choicest  of  all  national  possessions  consists  in  citizens 
qualified  for  the  service  of  their  country,   and  adorned  by  the 
great  virtues  which  ennoble  human  nature,    we  must  be  con- 
vinced, that  no  neglect  of  the  public  interests  can  be  more  inju- 
rious, than  indifference  and  disregard  to  the  well  earned  fame  of 
those  who  have  gone  to  their  rest  before  us.*     It  is  true,  that  a 
remembrance  ever  so  respectful  can  do  them  no  good;  they 
are  beyond  the  reach  both  of  our  censure  and  of  our  praise  ;  it 
is  for  our  own  sakes,  that  we  should  preserve  a  remembrance  of 
their  labours  and  their  virtues.     Nil  de  mortuis  nisi  honum,  is  a 
maxim  to  which  all  the  living  are  bound  to  have  regard,  and  in 
the  observance  of  which  they  will  all  soon  have  a  personal 
interest ;  but  still,  in  its  observance,  only  a  small  part  of  the  dutj' 
of  the  living  is  comprised  towards  those  who  have  acted  a  dis- 
tinguished part  in  pubMc  or  in  private,  and  whose  example  is 
fitted  to  have  a  beneficial  influence  on  those  who  succeed  them 
in  the  duties  of  life  which  they  have  suitably  fulfilled.     Every 
man  who  has  faithfully  discharged  the  unostentatious  duties  of 
private  life  in  all  the  relations  which  he  has  sustained,  who  has 
filled  many  situations  of  trust  and  honor  with  a  single  eye  to  the 
pubhc  good,  who  has  been  accustomed  by  his  uniform  mildness 

•The  question  may  well  be  asked,  whether  S.  Caiolina  has  done  herself  justice  in 
this  resf)ect.  Her  Colonial  and  State  History  is  adorned  with  many  distinguished  names, 
of  whi(  h  authentic  memorials  are  every  day  becoming  more  scanty.  Here  is  an  honourable 
field  of  labour  for  some  one  who  has  learning  and  leisure. 


and  urbanity  to  soften  the  asperities  of  ordinary  life,  to  moderate 
the  colUsions  of  prejudice  and  interest,  to  allay  the  virulence  of 
party  strife  and  bitterness,  to  banish  the  selfishness  and  enlarge 
the  sympathies  which  bind  men  to  each  other  in  society,  must 
have  left  an  example  of  labours  and  virtues  in  the  ccmmunity  to 
wliich  he  belonged,  woith^i-  the  most  careful  record  and  the  most 
industrious  preservation. 

These  reflections  have  occurred  to  me,  upon  commencing  the 
duty  assigned  me  by  the  Faculty  of  this  College,  to  pre}>ai-e  and 
pronounce  an  Eulogium  on  the  life  and  character  of  the  late 
Ehas  Horry,  Esq.     I  trust  they  will  be  considered  appropriate 
to  the  individual  who  has  called  them  forth,  and  to  the  occasion 
on  which  we  are  assembled.     Tliis  gentleman  was,  during  many 
years,  one  of  our  most  distinguished  citizens,  eminent  alike  for 
his  public  spirit  and  his  private  virtues.     The  universal  demon- 
strations of  respect  on  the  part  of  the  public,  when  his  decease 
became  known,  the  immense  concourse  of  our  most  respectable 
citizens  which  marketl  the  celebration  of  his  funeral  obsequies, 
and  the  strong   language  of  the  numerous  resolutions  which 
were  passed  on  the  occasion,  by  the  public  bodies  of  which  he 
was  a  member,*  shew  the  high  and  universal  estimation  in  which 
h-^  was  held  by  those  who  have  had  the  best  possible  opportunities 
of  being  acquainted  with  his  intrinsic  worth.     It  was  universally 
felt,  that  a  valuable  citizen,  a  pure  patriot,  a  zealous  philanthro- 
pist, a  public  benefactor,  a  sincere  Christian  and  an  upright 
man,  had  been  taken  from  among  us.     The  office  assigned  me, 
therefore,  on  this  occasion,  cannot  be  difficult ; — with  so  just  a  sub- 
ject of  eulogium  before  me,  it  can  require  but  ordinary  diligence 
in  collecting  materials,   and  much  less  than  ordinary  skill  in 
arranging  and  combining  them,  to  render  my  memoir  interesting 
and  valuable. 

The  late  Elias  Horry  was  bom  at  Charleston,  21st  June,  1773, 
and  was  a  descendant  of  the  French  Protestants.  His  Huguenot 
ancestor,  Elias  Horry,  the  Elder,  (so  called  in  tlie  records  of  the 
family,)  was  driven  from  France  by  the  revocation  of  the  Edict 
of  Nantz,  in  1685.  This  celebrated  Edict  had  been  passed  in 
1598  by  Henry  IV.  It  confirmed  to  the  protestants  of  the  king- 
dom, all  the  rights  and  privileges  which  had  been  granted  to 

*  gee  some  of  tliese  resolutions  reprinted  at  the  end. 


e 

tliem,  by  former  princes,  and  besides,  it  added  a  free  admission 
to  all  employments  of  trust,  profit  and  honor ;  an  establishment 
of  chambers  of  justice,  in  which  the  members  of  the  two  reli- 
^ons  (Catholic  and  Protestant)  were  equal;  and  liberty  to 
educate  their  children  without  restraint  in  an}'  of  the  universities. 
This  Edict  had  been  declared  irrevocable,  and  France  had 
flourished  under  the  traquilHty  which  it  afforded,  nearly  a  cen- 
tury ; — still  it  was  revoked  by  Louis  XIV.  in  1685.  For  some 
time  previous  to  its  revocation,  the  lot  of  the  Huguenots  had  been 
severe;  but  at  this  event,  hbeity  of  conscience  was  entirely 
abolished,  all  the  protestant  churches  were  destroyed,  and  an 
order  was  issued  to  take  away  the  children  of  protestants,  and 
to  put  them  into  the  hands  of  their  catholic  relations.  Their 
ministers  were  banished  from  the  kingdom,  but  the  laity  were 
prohibited  from  leaving  it,  although  the  law  inflicted  upon  them, 
the  utmost  severities  of  persecution.  All  the  terrors  of  military 
execution  were  employed  to  make  them  jjrofess  the  Roman  Cath- 
olic religion.  A  twentieth  part  of  the  whole  number  were  put  to 
death  in  a  short  time ;  and  a  price  was  set  on  the  heads  of  the  rest, 
who  were  hunted  Hke  wild  beasts*  More  than  half  a  million  of 
the  most  useful  and  industrious  inhabitants  of  France,  were  thus 
compelled  to  take  refuge  in  foreign  countries.  Among  this 
mimber  and  under  these  circumstances,  Elias  Horry  quitted 
France  and  went  to  Holland  where  he  had  relatives.  Although, 
at  that  time,  a  youth  of  no  more  than  twenty-one  years  of  age,  still 
he  was  made  a  freeman  of  the  city  of  Amsterdam.  From  Holland, 
he  passed  over  into  England,  and  from  thence,  with  many  other 
French  Huguenots,  he  came  to  So.  Carolina,  most  probably 
in  the  year  1690.  King  William  had  this  year  extended  his 
special  protection  to  the  French  protestants  who  had  taken  refuge 
in  his  dominions. 

At  their  arrival  in  Carolina,  the  Huguenots  were  considered 
a  great  acquisition  to  the  Colony.  They  could  not  be  regarded 
as  adventurers,  who  had  left  their  native  land  to  improve  their 
fortimes  in  a  new  countiy ;  much  less  as  persons  who  had  quitted 
their  country  for  conduct  worthy  of  banishment.  Prior  to  the 
revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantz,  most  of  them  had  resided  in 
France  in  easy  circumstances;  many  of  them  had  been  well 
educated ;  some  had  been  wealthy ;  others  were  Tiseful  trades- 


taen  and  manufacturers ;  and  all  had  been  driven  from  France  for 
no  other  cause  than  their  attachment  to  the  protestant  religion- 
Agreeably  to  existing  laws,  they  had  taken  the  oath  of  allegi- 
ance to  the  King,  and  promised  fidelity  to  the  proprietors.  They 
were  disposed  to  look  on  the  English  colonists  whom  they  had 
joined,  in  the  favorable  light  of  brethren  and  fellow  adventurers? 
and  though  they  understood  not  the  English  language,  yet  they 
were  desirous  of  living  in  peace  and  harmony  with  their  neigh^ 
hours,  and  willing  to  stand  forth  on  all  occasions  of  danger  with 
them  for  the  common  safety  and  defence.  From  the  French 
Huguenots,  who,  in  their  exile,  found  a  refuge  and  a  home  in 
this  Colony,  have  s]>rung  the  names  of  Laurens,  Huger,  Simons, 
Marion  and  many  others; — ^names  which  must  forever  continue 
to  adorn  the  pages  of  our  State  and  National  history.  Some 
of  the  Huguenots  had  saved  a  remnant  of  their  estates  in  France, 
and  it  is  probable  that  Elias  Horry  was  one  of  those,  who  having 
purchased  lands  of  the  Lords  Proprietors  of  Carolina  in  England, 
settled  themselves  as  a  Colony  on  the  river  Santeo.*  Many  of 
their  descendants  still  reside  on  these  most  fruitful  and  valuable 
lands  selected  by  their  ancestors* 

To  the  third  son  of  Elias  Horry,  the  American  founder  of  the 
family,  was  given  the  personal  and  Christian  name  of  his  father. 
He  was  born  in  1707,  and  was  generally  known  by  the  title  of 
Col.  Elias  Horry.  He  died  in  December  1783,  at  the  advanced 
age  of  76  years.  This  gentleman  left  two  sons,  Elias  and 
Thomas,  (born  11th  June  1748,)  from  the  last  of  whom,  the 
subject  of  this  memoir  was  descended.  His  mother's  maiden 
name  was  Ann  Branford.  She  was  a  daughter  of  William 
Branford,  and  was  bom  in  Charleston,  November  20,  1754. 
Her  son  has  borne  the  most  emphatic  testimony  to  her  excel- 
lences as  a  wife  and  a  mother.     She  died  12th  May,  1817. 

Mr.  Horry  was  principally  educated,  at  the  School  of  the  late 
James  Hamden  Thomson,  in  this  city.  Mr.  Thomson  is  repre- 
sented, by  his  scholars  and  other  cotemporaries,  to  have  been 
"a  teacher  of  the  first  respectability  in  respect  both  to  character 
and  talents,"  and  his  "Academy  has  always  been  celebrated  as 
the  first  of  its  era."  "  His  discipline  was  severe"  according  to 
the  temper  of  the  times;    "yet  many  of  his  scholars  were  much 

*  Sec  Heivatt'f)  History  of  S.  Carolina  smd  Georgia,  to].  1,  p.  108. 


8- 

attached  to  him."  "  The  course  of  instruction  in  his  school 
consisted  chiefly  of  the  Latin  and  Greek  authors  and  mathema- 
tics, and  he  had  the  reputation  of  being  an  excellent  Latin  and 
Greek  scholar  and  mathematician."  Mr.  Horry  "was  many 
years  his  scholar,"  and  "  has  often  been  heard  to  speak  of  him 
with  great  respect  and  affection."  His  cotemporaries  were 
in  the  habit  "of  speaking  of  him,  not  as  a  bright  scholar, 
but  as  a  studious  boy  of  great  perseverance  and  extraordi- 
nary memory," — "  so  steady  to  his  duties  that  he  was  a  favo- 
rite of  his  teacher."*  "He  was  considered  a  good  Latin 
scholar,  but  did  not  understand  the  Greek  language,  and  was 
accustomed  to  regret  that  he  had  not  studied  it  while  at  school." 
"He  paid  some  attention  to  it  afterwards,"  but  probably  obtained 
no  more  than  a  slight  acquaintance  with  its  rudiments.  He  was 
accustomed  to  read  French  with  readiness  and  accuracy.  I 
shall,  hereafter,  furnish  evidence  of  his  skill  in  practical  mathe- 
matics. 

After  passing  honourably  through  what  was,  at  that  time, 
considered  "an  excellent  Academic  course,"  he  entered,  (1st 
February,  1790,)  the  office  of  the  late  Gen.  Charles  Cotesworth 
Pinckney,  as  a  student  at  law.  His  companions  in  the  office  of 
this  very  distinguished  jurist  and  statesman,  were  Roger  Pinck- 
ney, the  late  Judge  Trezevant,  John  C.  Richardson  of  Claren- 
don, and  the  late  William  Johnson,  for  many  years,  an  Associate 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  "  In  Gen. 
Pinckney's  office,  it  was  the  established  course,  to  prescribe  a 
proper  system  of  legal  study,  and  to  examine  his  young  men  at 
appointed  times  as  regularly  as  in  our  Academies.  But  this  was 
not  their  most  efficient  employment,  to  become  masters  of  their 
future  profession.  This  efficient  employment  consisted  in  requir- 
ing each  student  to  examine  the  important  and  difficult  law- 
cases  in  which  the  General  was  engaged.  They  presented  their 
views  in  writing,  with  appropriate  cases  from  the  Reports. 
These  opinions,  Gen.  Pinckney  examined, — and  they  facilitated 
his  own  preparation,  as  the  cases  adduced  saved  much  labour. 
He  then  gave  them  his  own  opinion,  rectifying  and  often  con- 
firming their  views.  Mr.  Horry,  he  always  pronounced  as  one 
of  his  most  useful  and  assiduous  students,  or  rather  co-adjutore 

'Letter  of  Oeoige  W.  Cross.  Esq.  18th  December,  1834. 


in  these  oppressive  duties.*'*  It  was  in  this  office,  that  he 
acquired  those  habits  of  industry,  promptness,  method,  accuracy, 
patient  labour  and  perseverance,  which  accompanied  him 
through  life,  and  to  which  his  success  and  practical  usefulness, 
may,  in  a  great  measure,  be  ascribed.  "He  did  not  study  law 
with  a  view  to  practice,  but  he  was  diligent  and  persevering  in 
his  application,  and  acquired  a  very  competent  knowledge  of  the 
subject."  t  We  may  presume,  that  he  concurr red  in  sentiment 
with  Mr.  Justice  Blackstone,  who  says,  "  I  think  it  an  undeniable 
position,  that  a  competent  knowledge  of  the  laws  of  that  society 
in  which  we  hve,  is  the  proper  accompUshment  of  every  gen- 
tleman and  scholar;  an  highly  useful,  I  had  almost  said  essential 
part  of  liberal  and  polite  education."!  If  then,  a  knowledge  of 
the  laws  of  his  country,  as  this  learned  author  supposes,  "is  the 
proper  accomplishment  of  every  gentleman  and  scholar,"  this 
must  be  more  especially  the  case  with  respect  to  a  gentleman  born 
to  the  inheritance  of  a  large  estate,  and  necessarily  involved  in 
the  cares,  business  and  various  responsibilities  which  the  posses- 
sion of  such  an  estate  always  imposes  on  the  proprietor. 

He  was  admitted  an  attorney  and  solicitor  in  the  Courts  of 
Law  and  Equity  in  this  State,  on  the  8th  June,  1793.  His 
petition  for  admission  is  addressed  to  the  Hon.  Richard  Hutson^ 
John  Mathews,  and  Hugh  Rutledge,  Judges  of  the  Court  of 
Equity, — and  John  Rutledge,  Chief  Justice,  and  the  Associate 
Justices  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas.  At  the  age  of  twenty- 
four,  (30th  October,  1797,)  he  was  married  to  Harriet,  (born  in 
Christ  Church  parish  6th  April,  1776,)  eldest  daughter  of  Arnoldus 
Vanderhorst,  (born  March,  1748,  died  29th  January,  1815,)  a 
gentleman  of  high  political  standing,  who  had  been  governor  of 
So.  Carolina  from  1792  to  1794.  During  the  Ufe-time  of  this 
lady,  and  for  the  benefit  of  her  health,  he  resided  several  3'^ears 
at  Newport,  Rhode  Island.  She  died  6th  August,  1815,  leaving 
four  children.  Her  husband  has  left  this  testimony  to  her  excel- 
lences,— "  She  was  a  pious  Christian,  and  for  several  years  a 
communicant  of  the  (Protestant)  Episcopal  Church;  a  most 
faithful  and  affectionate  wife  and  tender  parent,  a  most  sincere 
friend,  and  with  all  the  accomplished  lady."     On  the  23d  Octo- 

*  Letter  of  Benjamin  Elliott,  Esq.  of  December,  1834.  fLetter  of  the  Hon.  Henry 

Dcas.  of  17th  November,  1834.  to  the  author.  :f  1  Commentaries,  p.  3. 

2 


16 

ber,  1817,  he  was  married  to  Mary  R.  Shubrick,  third  daughter 
of  Col.  Thomas  Shubrick,  a  gentleman  of  large  estate  and  fan- 
fame.  This  lady  survives,  to  hold  up  to  their  children,  the  ex- 
ample of  the  industry,  the  urbanity,  the  moderation,  and  the 
enlightened  and  Uberal  spirit  of  their  father,  and  to  guide  them 
in  the  path  of  usefulness  which  he  pursued  before  them.* 

In  1820  his  father  died  at  the  advanced  age  of  72  years.  By 
this  event,  he  succeeded  to  his  paternal  estate,  and  his  time  and 
attention  were  henceforth  occupied  in  its  management,  in  the 
exemplary  performance  of  the  duties  of  private  hfe  and  in  the 
conscientious  discharge  of  the  many  offices  of  trust  and  honour 
to  which  he  was  called  by  the  confidence  of  his  fellow-citizens. 
He  was  accustomed  to  visit  his  estates  on  the  Santee  in  spring 
and  autumn,  when  he  passed  some  time  in  inspecting  them,  and 
occasionally  at  other  times;  but  much  the  greatest  part  of  his 
time  was  passed  in  this  city.  On  occasion  of  his  customary  visit 
to  Santee  last  spring,  he  was  visited  with  severe  illness,  and 
serious  apprehensions  were  entertained  of  his  immediate  disso- 
lution. He  revived,  however,  and  returned  to  the  city  early  in 
May.  When  I  first  saw  him  after  his  return,  I  referred  to  his 
recent  illness,  and  expressed  my  gratfication  at  seeing  him  so  far 
restored  to  health.  He  rephed,  I  have  been  seriously  indisposed, 
and  did  not  much  expect  to  recover,  but  I  was  contented  to  die, 
if  such  had  been  God's  will.  I  have  no  ill-will  against  any  man, 
continued  he,  and  it  is  not  known  to  me,  that  any  man  has  anj-^ 
ill-will  against  me.  This  was  said,  not  in  the  way  of  boasting, 
but  his  meaning  was,  that,  according  to  the  requirement  of  the 
gospel,  he  considered  himself  living  in  charity  with  all  mankind. 
He  continued  to  attend  to  business  as  usual  after  his  return,  but 
it  was  perceived  by  his  friends  that  his  health  was  graduallj'^ 
sinking,  and  fears  were  entertained  that  his  constitution  was 
undermined.  By  midsummer,  he  became  satisfied  of  the  neces- 
sity of  using  the  most  effectual  means  for  the  restoration  of  his 
health,  and  to  this  end,  he  proposed  to  resort  to  Newport,  in 

*  The  above  infurmation  respecting  Mr.  H's.  ancestors  and  family,  has  been  drawn  from 
three  Family  Bildes  which  have  been  kindly  loaned  to  the  author.  One  of  tliem  is  a 
beautiful  Folio  Edition  in  two  volumes,  purporting  to  be  the  gift  of  "Thomas  Horrv,  to  his 
son  Elias  Horry,  1791."  One  of  the  volumes  has  between  twelve  and  thirteen  folio  pages 
closely  written  in  Mr.  H's.  beautiiul  hand-writing,  containing  notices  of  his  ancestors,  and 
Bome  detail  of  the  circumstances  under  which  the  Huguenots  left  France  and  settled  in 
Carolina.  The  two  other  editions  (both  quarto)  contain  a  very  neat  and  exact  register 
(between  seven  and  eight  pages)  of  the  births,  baptisms,  comfirmatious,  marriages  and 
deaths  of  the  diflerent  members  of  the  Horry  family  for  many  years  past,  including  some  o!' 
thtt  collateral  branches. 


li 

Rhode  Island,  atti'acted,  we  may  presume,  by  the  delightful  sum- 
mer climate,  by  the  polished  society  which  that  city  affords,  par- 
ticularly in  the  summer ;  and  by  the  local  attachment  which  he 
may  be  supposed  to  have  formed  for  the  place,  during  his  resi- 
dence there  in  earlier  life.  The  expected  relief,  however,  was 
not  obtained, — it  soon  became  manifest  that  he  was  labouring 
under  a  dropsy  of  the  chest,  and  that  no  time  was  to  be  lost,  if 
he  was  ever  to  reach  his  native  city.  It  must  be  the  desire  of 
every  man  to  open  liis  eyes  for  the  last  time  upon  his  wife  and 
children,  and  to  close  them  amidst  the  scenes  and  endearments 
of  his  own  home ;  and  it  must  afford  consolation  to  every  family 
to  be  permitted  to  close  the  eyes  of  him  (when  he  can  no  more 
close  them  himself)  who  has  been  respected  and  honoured  by 
them  as  a  husband  and  a  father,  and  with  their  own  eyes,  to  see 
his  mortal  remains  consigned  to  the  house  appointed  for  all  Uv- 
ing.  This  feeling  has  been  recognised  and  respected  at  all 
times, — traces  of  it  are  found  in  the  literarj'-  records  of  every 
nation  ;*  and  for  this  last  of  human  consolations,  I  am  well  per- 
suaded, his  family  are  indebted  to  the  wise  foresight,  skill  and 
energy  of  the  gentleman  who  attended  him  in  the  two-fold  rela- 
tion of  his  physician  and  his  friend.t  He  arrived  at  his  home  in 
the  last  stages  of  the  disease  which  was  rapidly  wasting  him 
away,  where  he  languished  a  few  days  and  died  on  the  morning 
of  the  17th  September.  As  he  had  been  useful  and  pious  in 
life,  so  his  death  was  calm  and  peaceful. J 

It  must  be  manifest  to  all,  that  much  of  my  duty  on  this  occa- 
sion still  remains  to  be  performed ; — the  labours  of  a  good  man 
survive  him,  and  we  may  consider  the  subject  of  this  memoir 
under  several  aspects  which  cannot  fail  to  be  instructive. 

I.  He  may  be  viewed  as  the  proprietor  of  a  large  estate. 
Wealth  confers  upon  its  possessor  many  and  great  advantages, 
which  none  but  the  wealthy  are  in  circumstances  to  enjoy  ;  but 
at  the  same  time,  it  brings  him  into  new  relations,  and  imposes 
upon  him  new  and  imperative  duties,  which  he  cannot  neglect  or 
refuse  to  perform,  without  dishonour  in  this  world,  and  (it  is  not 
too  much  to  say)  hazard  to  his  eternal  interest  in  the  world  to 

*  See  Odjssey,  Lib.  xi.  424—5.  vEneid,  x.  781.  Gen.  xlix.  29— 31,— Idem.  L.  13.  25.— 
Taritiis'  Life  of  Agricola,  c.  45. — Thomsou's  Winter,  l.  280,  <fec.      fDr.  Joseph  Manning. 

t"  Confirmation,  August  4th,  (Wednesday,)  1813.  Eliasand  Harriet  Horry  were  confirmed 
at  the  altar  of  St.  Michael's  Church,  Charleston,  S.  C.  by  the  Right  Reverend  Dr.  Dehon, 
Riihop  of  the  (Protestant)  Episcopal  Churcli  in  S.  Carolina." — Family  Records. 


12 

come.  The  rich  man,  in  the  order  of  Providence,  has  become 
the  steward  and  dispenser  of  a  treasure,  which  is  capable  of  do- 
ing much  good  or  much  evil  to  himself  and  others,  according  to 
the  spirit  and  the  ends  for  which  it  is  employed.  This  sentiment 
is  as  ancient  as  the  time  of  the  Socratic  writer  Cebes,  and  has 
never  been  more  fully  or  strikingly  illustrated  than  by  him.* 
Riches,  moreover,  are  pecuharly  liable  to  perversion  and  abuse. 
Too  often,  wealth  is  made  the  minister  of  luxury,  effeminacy, 
and  of  every  species  of  vice  which  can  degrade  and  destroy 
mankind.  On  the  other  hand,  there  is,  perhaps,  no  instrument 
by  which  the  possessor  can  accomplish  more  extensive  and 
lasting  good  than  by  wealth.  In  the  hands  of  the  humane, 
it  may  make  the  cottage  of  the  destitute  and  friendless  smile 
with  comparative  comfort  and  plenty.  It  may  be  made  to 
cheer  the  hearts,  and  revive  the  spirits,  and  encourage  the 
efforts  of  poor,  but  meritorious  families,  when  in  circumstan- 
ces of  discouragement  and  depression.  In  the  hands  of  the 
public  spirited,  it  may  be  made  to  originate  or  advance  enter- 
prises which  adorn  and  improve  the  country  in  which  they  dwell. 
It  may  be  used  to  patronize  those  ornamental  aits  which  embel- 
lish life,  and  give  refinement  and  polish  to  social  intercourse. 
In  satisfying  the  claims  of  a  generous  hospitality,  it  may  be 
made  to  conti'ibute  to  the  harmony  of  social  intercourse  and  the 
cultivation  of  good  feeling.t  It  may  be  made  to  advance  the 
great  cause  of  universal  elementary  education,  on  which  the 
preservation  of  our  most  valuable  institutions  so  much  depends. 
Or  still,  it  may  be  made  to  advance  the  noble  cause  of  literature 
and  the  sciences.  More  than  all,  in  the  hands  of  the  pious,  it 
may  be  made  the  instrument  of  multiplying  copies  of  the  Bible, 
of  planting  new  churches  in  our  destitute  settlements,  of  educat- 
ing pious  young  men  for  the  ministry,  and  of  sending  the  heralds 
of  the  cross  to  preach  the  gospel  in  the  remotest  corners  of  the 
earth.  All  these  objects  and  many  more,  it  is  in  the  power  of 
the  wealthy  to  originate,  and  in  a  most  essential  degree,  to  ad- 
vance and  bring  to  consummation.      With  aU  these  ways  of 

*  See  Tabula  Cebetis  Thebani,  Sect.  39,  Sec. 

t  Josephus  understands  the  provision  of  tlie  Law  of  Moses,  which  required  all  the 
Hebrews  to  assemble  thrice  a  year  at  Jerusalem,  to  have  been  partly  designed  to  give 
opportunity  for  the  cultivation  of  a  friendly  intercourse  and  good  (eelin?  by  personal 
acquaintance,  festive  entertainments  and  other  social  meetings. — See  Antiquitiet  of  the  Jevi, 
Jjib.  IV.  C.  8,  Sect.  7.  No  one  who  has  enjoyed  Mr.  Horrj's  hospitality,  can forijet  the  ci»?e 
and  dignified  courteey  with  which  he  enteitained  his  guesiS: 


13 

using  wealth  for  the  benefit  of  mankind,   the  subject  of  th'3 
memoir  was  perfectly  familiar. 

He  was,  also,  eminently  free  from  the  selfishness,  haughtiness 
and  purse-pride  which  too  often  accompany  the  possession  of 
great  wealth.  It  is  unquestionable,  that  the  tendency  of  great 
riches  is,  to  harden  the  heart,  and  to  render  it  callous  to  the 
sufferings  and  insensible  to  the  welfare  of  other  men.  *'  The 
insolence  of  wealth"  is  so  usual  as  to  have  passed  into  a  proverb. 
All  this  was  unknown  to  him.  In  every  company,  he  put  him- 
self on  a  footing  with  the  humblest.  His  manners  were  at  all 
times  affable  and  conciliating.  He  possessed  frankness  untainted 
by  the  slightest  approach  to  rudeness.  His  urbanity  was  unfail- 
ing and  his  equanimity  (semper  idem  vultus,  semper  eadem  frons) 
did  not  seem  capable  of  being  disturbed.  He  was  in  the  habit 
of  conversing  much  and  without  reserve  with  all  orders  of  men. 
Modest  merit  he  loved  to  encourage.  The  young  unknown  to 
fame,  the  timid  shrinking  from  public  observation,  always  found  in 
him  a  sympathising  friend,  a  wise  and  sincere  adviser,  and  if 
necessary,  a  generous  patron. 

2.  It  must  be  manifest,  that  practical  usefulness  was  the  chief 
aim  and  object  of  his  life.  Placed  by  Providence  in  easy  cir- 
cumstances, he  was  furnished  with  manifold  opportunities  of 
showing  the  prevailing  spirit  which  reigned  within  him.  Cicero 
observes,  that  tbere  are  two  ways  by  which  the  rich  man  may 
do  good ;  the  one,  by  the  judicious  and  discriminating  use  of  his 
wealth, — the  other,  by  his  personal  endeavours  to  be  useful.  This 
celebrated  author  justly  considers  the  doing  good  by  personal 
exertion  to  be  the  more  meritorious ;  and  he  well  observes  further, 
that  many  are  willing  to  do  good  by  a  free  use  of  their  wealth, 
who  shrink  from  the  labour  and  self-denial  of  doing  good  at 
the  expense  of  any  consideral:)le  personal  exertion.*  We  have 
seen  the  use  which  IMr.  Horry  was  willing  to  make  of  his 
ample  wealth,  for  the  benefit  of  mankind.  The  same  ample 
wealth  gave  him  complete  command  of  his  time,  except  so 
far  as  this  was  taken  up  in  the  management  of  his  estate. 
This  leisure  was  conscientiously  and  earnestly  devoted  to  the 
accomplishment  of  every  good  purpose,  which  he  saw  within 
his  reach.      No  valuable  object  was  brought  to  his   notice, 

*  Do  Officiis,  II.  13, 


14 

without  receiving  his  countenance  and  encouragement.  The 
humblest  sphere  of  usefulness  was  not  beneath  his  attention. 
When  the  Charleston  Infant  School  Society  was  instituted  for 
the  exclusive  benefit  of  poor  children,  he  filled  the  humble  office 
of  one  of  its  directors,  and  in  1830  wrote  the  report  of  the 
society.  "  When  chosen  Chief  Magistrate  of  the  City,  he  did  not, 
thercfoie^  dechne,"  says  the  chairman,  "the  humble  but  useful 
office  of  secretary  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  Orphan  House, 
to  which  he  had  been  previously  appointed."*  It  is  not  more 
than  three  years  since,  when  on  a  visit  to  him,  he  spoke  to  me 
thus: — "I  am  approaching  my  sixtieth  year,  and  begin  to  feel 
the  approaches  of  age, — I  have  considerable  business  of  my 
own,  and  it  is  now  many  years  during  which  I  have  done  much 
business  for  others  gratuitously, — when  I  have  completed  sixty 
years,  I  think  I  may  be  excused  from  attending  to  the  business  of 
others,  and  my  intention  is  at  that  time,  if  Providence  spares  me 
thus  long,  to  withdraw  from  all  business  except  my  own."  Still, 
he  lived  to  see  more  than  sixty  one  years  (61  years  3  months) 
without  even  beginning  thus  to  withdraw  himself  from  the  much 
gratuitous  business  which  he  had  for  so  many  years  performed, 
and  confining  himself  exclusively  to  his  own; — a  course  which 
his  age  and  commencing  infirmities  might  have  fully  justified. 
This  can  only  be  referred  to  his  prevaiUng  and  earnest  desire  to 
make  himself  useful.  We  may  presume,  that  if  his  Kfe  had  been 
prolonged  another  ten  years, — as  he  had  previously  laboured  in 
season,  so  he  would  have  continued  to  labour  out  of  season.  May 
I  here  claim  indulgence  for  the  remark  in  passing,  that  the  expe- 
diency of  retiring  from  business  as  old  age  approaches,  seems 

*  Among  our  public  bodies,  there  is  no  one  more  useful  in  recjard  to  the  object  for  which  it 
was  instituted,  or  more  dignified  in  respect  to  the  members  who  liave,  from  the  beginning, 
composed  it,  than  the  Board  of  Commissioners  of  the  Orphan  House.  The  place  of  the  natu- 
ral guardians  and  protectors  of  the  numerous  children  there  assembled,  is  supplied,  as  far  as 
such  supply  is  possible,  by  a  body  of  gentlemen  well  known  for  their  public  and  private  worth. 
"The  Commissioners  of^the  Orphan  House,  says  the  present  Chairman,  in  addition  to  the 
general  superintendance  and  care  of  the  Institution,  are  expected,  each  in  succession, 
weekly  to  visit,  examine  into,  inform  themselves  and  report  the  wants  and  necessities  of  the 
House,  and  to  make  all  necessary  enquiries  and  report  upon  matters  particularly  referred  to 
them.  On  Sundays,  continues  he,  the  visiting  commissioner  for  the  week,  attends  at  th« 
Chapel,  and  goes  through  some  form  of  religious  instruction  to  the  children  "  The  religious 
service  here  referred  to,  is  confined  to  the  mornings  of  Sundays,  and  \Xsform  is  varied,  in 
some  measure,  according  to  the  customs  of  the  religious  denomination  to  which  the  Com- 
missioner in  attendance,  belongs.  In  the  afternoons  of  Sundays,  the  Clerg}-  of  the  city 
preach  by  turns,  and  strangers,  when  in  the  city,  are  frequently  invited  to  preach.  In  the 
Sunday  morning  service,  the  Commissioners  generally  use  the  Ritual  ot  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  and  the  Catechism  of  the  same  Church  in  instructing  the  children. 
Most  of  them  omit  the  peculiarities  both  of  the  Ritual  and  of  the  Catechism, — Mr.  Horry, 
however,  was  accustomed,  in  conductins  the  religious  services  of  the  Chapel,  to  use  thr 
Ritual  entire,  and  in  instructing  the  children,  to  use  the  entire  Catechism. 


15 

very  questionable.  The  instances  of  Dr.  Franklin,  Chief  Justice 
Marshall  and  others  which  might  be  cited,  seem  to  afford  ground 
for  the  belief,  that  continued  attention  to  active  pursuits  as  age 
advances,  preserves  the  body  from  premature  infirmities,  and  the 
faculties  of  the  mind  from  premature  decay. 

3.  The  subject  of  this  memoir  was  extensively  invested  with 
situations  of  trust  and  honour.  In  early  life,  he  was  made  a  mem- 
ber of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  S.  Carolina, — and  at  his 
death,  he  was  invested  with  the  same  honourable  trust.  As  a 
representative,  he  was,  as  usual,  laborious  and  useful.  He  some- 
times took  part  in  the  debates  of  the  House,  but  not  often.  But 
it  was  es|>ecially  as  Intendant  of  our  city,  that  he  rendered  valu- 
able services  to  the  public.  He  was  first  elected  to  this  impor- 
tant and  honourable  office  in  March,  1815,  on  occasion  of  the 
resignation  of  Thomas  Rhett  Smith,  Esq.  before  the  completion 
of  his  official  term.  He  was  again  chosen  at  the  usual  times  of" 
election  in  September,  1815  and  1816,  as  also  in  1820,  and  in 
1821  declined  being  a  candidate  for  re-election.  The  Intendancy 
of  our  city  has  always  been  filled  by  our  most  distinguished  citi- 
zens,— sometimes  by  men  well  known  to  fame.  His  correspon- 
dence with  the  War  Department,  while  Intendant  in  1815  and 
1816,  reflects  much  credit  on  his  ddigence,  patriotism,  knowl- 
edge and  high  sense  of  duty,  and  ought  be  held  in  lasting  remem- 
brance by  our  citizens.  It  related  to  the  claims  of  the  city  on 
the  United  States,  chiefly  for  the  construction  of  the  fortifica- 
tions extending  fi*om  Ashley  to  Cooper  river  above  the  city,  and 
usually  called  *'  the  lines."  His  two  principal  letters  to  the  War 
Department  are  dated  12th  July,  1815,  and  fill  eleven  folio  pages 
closely  written.*  The  first  letter  of  12th  July,  to  which  the 
other  is  only  supplementary,  argues  the  grounds  of  the  claims  of 
the  city,  in  reference  both  to  their  legal  and  equitable  nature, 
and  in  connexion  with  the  various  evidences  produced  to  sub- 
stantiate them.  It  is  a  fine  specimen  of  clear  statement,  exact 
detail  of  facts  and  circumstances  aud  of  the  appUcation  of  sound 
principles  of  law  and  equity  to  both.  The  result  of  this  volu- 
minous correspondence,  was,  the  establislmaeut  and  hquidation 
of  claims  in  favour  of  the  city,  to  the  amount  of  $204,889  23, 
and  interest  on  the  same  was  afterwards  obtained  to  the  amount 

•Journals  of  Council  from  1815  to  1818,  vol.  xi.  pp.  10—20. 


16 

o(  $8,531  36  more.*  Services  like  these  should  uot  be  Ibrgotteri 
by  those  to  whom  they  were  gratuitously  reudered.t  So  sensi- 
ble were  the  City  Council  to  the  value  of  his  labours  in  respect 
to  these  claims,  that  a  resolution  was  passed  on  30th  August, 
1817,  in  these  terms: — "The  Council  have  witnessed  the  inde- 
fatigable assiduity  and  zeal  of  his  Honor  Elias  Horry,  Intendant, 
in  discharge  of  the  arduous  duties  of  the  elevated  station  he  held 
among  them,  and  they  bear  testimony  to  the  fidelity  and  prompt- 
ness with  which  his  duties  have  been  performed."!  The  Inten- 
dant of  our  city  enjoys  no  salaiy,  and  all  these  services  were 
rendered  without  expectation  and  without  reward. 

There  is  another  species  of  honourable  ti'ust  with  which  he 
■was  very  extensively  invested,  by  the  pubUc  confidence  which 
was  reposed  in  him.  I  refer  to  the  very  numerous  offices  which 
he  held  in  our  more  important  private  associations  instituted  for 
social,  charitable,  literary,  moral  and  religious  purposes,  which 
exhausted  much  of  his  time,  imposed  on  him  much  labour  and 
expense,  and  involved  him  in  much  responsibility.  It  is  believed, 
that  no  individual  in  our  community  has  done  more  of  this  unam- 
bitious kind  of  service,  or  has  in  this  way  contributed  more  to 
the  public  good.  As  his  estate  consisted  almost  entirely  in  lands 
and  labourers,  it  was  natural  that  he  should  feel  the  highest  in- 
terest in  whatever  related  to  agriculture.  For  several  years  last 
past,  he  fiUed  the  laborious  situation  of  corresponding  secre- 
tary of  our  Agricultural  Society,  "in  which  capacity  he  always 
acquitted  himself  with  credit  and  satisfaction  to  the  society." 
"He  was  always  an  active  member,  attendmg  the  meetings 
with  great  punctuality,  serving  on  various  committees,  and  im- 
parting freely  the  information  he  had  treasured  up."  "He  was 
one  of  the  founders  of  our  Horticultural  Society,  and  as  chair- 
man of  the  committee,  signed  tlie  constitution  and  by-laws, 
24th  September,  1830.  He  was  made  its  first  President  in  Oc- 
tober, 1830,  was  again  elected  in  1831,  and  in  1832  declined  a 
re-election.  He  continued,  however,  a  zealous  and  useful  mem- 
ber until  his  death.  Many  useful  communications  were  made  by 
him  to  the  society."     "He  was  a  member  of  the  Literary  and 

*  Journals  of  Council  from  1815  to  1818,  vol.  xi.  pp.  87.  150. 

t  The  Hon.  Henrj'  Middleton,  late  American  Minister  to  Russia,  and  at  that  time,  the 
Representative  in  Congress  from  Charleston  Congressional  District,  rendered  much  aid  in 
establishing  these  claims.        t  Journals  of  Council  from  1815  to  1818,  vol.  xi.  p.  337. 


17 

^  Philosophical  Society  of  S.  Carolina  from  its  formation  in  1813,— 
21  years."  "  He  was  a  life  member  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Society  for  the  advancement  of  Christianity  in  S.  Carolina  from 
its  institution,  and  a  trustee,  from  its  second  anniversary  to  the 
close  of  his  life."  He  was  for  many  years  a  member  and  a  di- 
rector of  the  S.  Carolina  Society, — one  of  our  oldest  and  most 
effective  associations  for  the  promotion  of  education  and  general 
charity.  He  was  found  among  the  most  zealous  members  and 
advocates  of  the  S.  Carolina  Association,  instituted  within  a  few 
years,  in  aid  of  the  law,  for  preserving  our  domestic  institutions 
in  their  integrit3^  "  He  was  President  of  the  Revolutionary  Soci- 
et}^" — a  political  association  instituted  to  commemorate  and  per- 
petuate the  principles  of  the  American  revolution.  "He  was, 
moreover.  President  of  the  Society  for  the  relief  of  the  widows 
and  orphans  of  the  Clergy  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church; 
and  of  the  corporation  of  the  French  Protestant  Church  of  this 
city."  "  At  the  time  of  his  death,  he  was  chairman  of  the  Board 
of  Commissioners  of  Free  Schools  for  the  parishes  of  St.  Philip 
and  St.  Michael, — and  as  a  member  of  the  Board,  he  long  and 
industriously  contributed  to  the  welfiire  of  the  Free  Schools." 
"He  was  annually  elected  by  the  City  Council,  a  commissioner 
of  the  Orphan  House  from  1814  to  the  time  of  his  death,  and 
was  the  secretary  of  the  Board  from  the  time  of  his  election  as 
commissioner  until  1827, — 13  years."  In  estabhshing  the 
Medical  College  of  the  State  of  S.  Carolina  in  1832,  the  Legis- 
lature made  him  one  of  its  Trustees.  It  is  well  known,  that 
our  rail-road  has  met  with  a  full  share  of  the  difficulties  which 
beset  the  wa}'  of  all  new  and  great  undertakings,  and  perhaps 
no  one  has  contributed  to  the  success  of  this  splendid  enterprise 
more  than  himself.  At  a  crisis  of  unusual  embarrassment 
in  the  affairs  of  the  compan}^  he  became  one  of  the  largest 
subscribers  to  the  stock,  and  at  the  death  of  the  late  Mr.  Aiken, 
became  its  President.*  "Being  known  as  a  gentleman  of 
fortune  both  here  and  abroad,  his  name  as  President  aided 
much  in  sustaining  the  credit  of  the  company,  and  by  his  en- 
dorsements individually,  which  were  for  a  much  larger  amount 
than  those  of  any  other  director,  means  were  obtained,  which 

•5th  March.  1831. 

•J 


18 

would  otherwise  have  been  withheld.     He  never  received  any 
compensation  for  his  services  as  President,  and  under  the  most 
discouraging  circumstances,  looked  forward,  with  full  confidence, 
to  the  ultimate  success  of  the  enterprise."*     "He  was  during 
forty  years,  (from  1794  to  his  death,)  a  member  of  our  Library 
Society,  and  was  elected  its  President  in  January  1831,  having 
been  the  successor  of  the  late  Timothy  Ford,  Esq."     The  hon- 
our attached  by  public  opinion  to  this  office  in  which  he  contin-  ' 
ued  to  his  death,  may  be  estimated  by  calling  to  mind,  that  such 
men  as  Chief  Justice  Charles  Pinckney,  (1751  to  1753,)  Gover- 
nor Lord  Charles  Greville  Montague,   (1767  to  1770,)  Charles 
Cotesworth  Pinckney,  (1792  to  1797,  and  again  from  1798  to 
1807,)  John  Jalius  Pringle,   (1812  to  1816,)   Stephen  EUiott, 
(1816  to  1826,)  and  J.  R.  Poinsett,  (elected  13th  inst.)  have  at 
different  times  filled  the  station.     He  was  elected  a  Trustee  of 
this  College  in  1813,   and  he  successively  filled  the  offices  of 
secretary,  treasurer,  and  Vice-President  of  the  Board,  and  in 
1833   was  unanimously  elected   its   President.     AU  this  vast 
amount  of  laborious  service,  continued  through  so  man}'  years, 
was  rendered  gratuitously, — not  only  so,  it  was  attended  with  a 
degree  of  expense,  which  must  have  been  seriously  burthen- 
some  to  any  other  than  a  gentleman  of  liberal  spirit  and  large 
fortune,  t 

4.  It  remains  to  view  the  subject  of  this  memoir  in  the  char- 
acter of  a  distinguished  patron  of  hterature  and  science.  The 
excellent  academic  course  through  which  he  passed  when  young, 
and  his  subsequent  study  of  the  law  under  influences  so  favour- 
able as  those  which  he  enjoyed  in  Gen.  Pinckney's  office,  gave 
him  a  decided  taste  for  literary  and  scientific  pursuits.  His  read- 
ing may  be  said,  with  great  tinath,  to  have  been  both  various  and 
extensive.  His  libraiy  was  large,  (2500  volumes,)  and  was 
selected  with  great  good  judgment.  It  contains  all  the  standard 
works  usually  seen  in  our  most  valuable  private  hbraries.  On 
agriculture,  architecture  and  natural  history,  it  contains  a  consi- 
derable number  of  rare  and  costly  volumes.  There  were  few  sub- 
jects, (if  any,)  on  which  he  had  not  aU  the  infonnation  which 

*  Letter  of  John  Ravenel,  Esq.  18th  November,  1834,  to  the  author. 

tBesii'e^  the  letters  before  cited,  the  author  has  used  in  compiling  this  paragraph,  letters 
obligingly  w>itten  him  by  Rev.  Dr.  Dalciio,  Rev.  Mr.  Manly,  James  Jervej-,  Benjamin  Elliott, 
Joseph  F.  O'Hear,  and  Charles  E.  Rowand,  Esquires.  To  give  more  autliority,  the  very 
tenns  of  the  writers  have  generally  been  used. 


19 

can  be  expected  of  an  accomplished  gentleman,  whose  pursuits 
have  not  been  professedly  literary  and  scientific*  He  had  care- 
fully studied  architecture  in  its  principles,  and  had  a  fine  taste  in 
that  beautiful  and  useful  art.  He  AA^rote  with  considerable  facil- 
ity and  skill,  but  cannot  be  said  to  have  wielded  a  practised  pen. 
Yet  he  has  left  several  highly  respectable  memorials  both  of  his 
scientific  acquirements  and  of  his  skill  in  writing.  When  a  mem- 
ber of  the  City  Council  in  1814,  he  reported  a  bill  for  the  adjust- 
ment and  regulation  of  the  weights  and  measures  to  be  used  in 
this  city,  which  was  passed  without  alteration,  and  is  still  the  law 
of  our  city  on  this  subject.  It  fills  seventeen  printed  pages  in 
our  city  ordinances,!  exhibits  considerable  mathematical  skill, 
and  must  have  cost  him  much  labour.  It  adopts  the  Troy  grain 
as  the  standard  unit  of  all  weights  of  whatever  kind,  and  reduces 
all  measures  of  extension  and  capacity  to  the  standard  linear 
English  inch.  It  is  a  wise  medium  between  an  obstinate 
adherence  to  pre-existing  customs  and  forms  which  have  nothing 
but  their  antiquity  to  recommend  them,  and  that  rash  spirit  of 
innovation  which  is  willing  to  sacrifice  practical  and  attainable 
good  to  the  delusions  of  speculation  and  the  seductions  of  high- 
wrought  theory.  His  report  (16  pages)  as  chairman  "of  the 
committee  of  the  Agricultural  Society  on  the  miU  constructed  by 
Mr.  John  Ravenel,  for  pounding  and  preparing  rice  for  market," 
presented  and  unanimously  accepted  20th  October,  1829,  fur- 
nishes similar  proof  of  his  practical  skill  in  calculation  and  of  his 
acquaintance  with  the  construction  of  machinery.  His  address 
before  the  Agricultural  Society  of  S.  Carolina  in  1830,  was  re- 
ceived with  approbation  not  only  in  this  State,  but  met  with  the 
most  respectful  notice  in  a  distant  quarter  of  the  Union. f  For 
some  time  previous  to  his  death,  he  had  been  engaged  with  the 
late  Mr.  Grimke  and  others,  in  translating  the  liiturgy  of  the 
French  Protestant  Church  in  this  city.     I  have  been  permitted 

*  An  instance  illustrative  of  this  remark,  is  within  the  recollection  of  the  author.  On  an 
occasion  within  two  or  three  years,  when  the  genuineness  of  the  Pentateuch  was  the  topic 
of  conversation,  he  observed,  "in  ancient  times,  the  modern  distinctions  between  text,  notes 
and  appendix  were  not  known  to  writers,  and  this  is  the  case  with  the  Pentateuch.  It  was 
written  by  Moses,  and  revised  by  a  later  hand,  probably  by  Ezra,  who  introduced  into  the 
text  a  few  explanations,  which  the  lapse  of  time  had  rendered  necessary  to  remove  certain 

oiiscuritics whereas  a  modern  editor  would  have  added  the  same  explanations  in  the  form  of 

notes.  In  a  similar  way,  the  closing  paragraph  of  Deuteronomy  was  annexed  by  a  later 
hand,' probably  by  Joshua,  to  the  preceding  text  without  any  distinction,  when  it  would  have 
Ijecn  called  an  appendix,  by  a  modern  writer."  These  observations  of  themselves,  remove 
nianv  of  the  difticulticg,  which  have  been  supposed  to  belouEr  to  the  Pentateuch. 

+l>i<'est  of  1818,  111  237 — ^253.  t  Maryland, — Letter  of  Charles  E.  Rowand,  Esq. 


20 

to  inspect  the  part  translated  by  him.  It  comprises  the  morning" 
and  evening  service,  the  service  for  the  catechism,  and  the  table 
of  lessons  for  the  morning  and  evening  sers'ice  on  special  occa- 
sions,— in  all,  eighteen  quarto  pages  of  the  original.  His  address 
at  the  completion  of  the  rail-road,  2d  October,  1833,  must  be 
well  remembered  by  many  of  our  citizens.  It  is  a  valuable  doc- 
ument exhibiting  much  research  and  much  knowledge  of  the 
subject  to  which  it  pertains.  With  an  understanding  enriched 
by  knowledge,  a  taste  refined  by  study,  and  a  heart  expanding 
with  benevolence,  it  was  natural,  that  he  should  have  been  de- 
sirous of  doing  something  to  give  an  impulse  to  the  cause  of  litera- 
ture and  science  in  his  native  cit}''.  After  cai'eful  reflection  on 
the  best  method  of  accomplishing  the  end  which  he  seems,  for 
a  long  time,  to  have  contemplated,  he  concluded  to  make  this 
College  the  depositary  of  his  munificence,  by  establishing  in  it  a 
Professorship  of  Moral  and  Political  Philosoph}'.  Of  this  act,  I 
shall  say  no  more  than  cite  the  views  of  the  Trustees  as  made 
known  at  their  anniversary  meeting,  13th  October,  1828.  They 
say, — "  Elias  Horry,  Esq.  having  made  a  donation,  to  the  Charles- 
ton College,  of  $10,000,  the  Trustees  of  that  institution,  while 
expressing  their  deep  sense  of  an  act  of  munificence,  whicli  they 
believe  to  be  unparalleled  in  the  history  of  our  State,  derive  un- 
feigned pleasure  from  the  reflection,  that  the  memorj^  will  not 
pass  away  with  their  transitory  existence.  Ordinarily,  the  fruits 
of  benevolence  perish  with  their  immediate  appropriation,  but  in 
this  instance,  they  will  be  enjoyed  by  the  living  and  preserved  in 
their  original  bloom  and  freshness  for  future  ages.  As  long  as  lite- 
rature and  science  and  the  improvement  of  the  mmds  and  morals 
of  the  rising  generation  shall  be  cultivated  among  us, — the  name 
of  the  distinguished  patron  and  promoter  of  these  inestimable 
blessings  will  be  gratefiiUy  associated  with  them. — Influenced  by 
these  sentiments, — it  is,  therefoi'e,  resolved  by  the  Trustees  of 
the  College  of  Charleston,  that  their  thanks  be  presented  to 
Elias  Horry,  Esq.  for  his  donation  to  that  mstitulion  which  does 
equal  honour  to  his  head  and  to  his  heart,  evincing  a  devotion  to 
the  interests  and  prosperity  of  his  native  State  and  a  zeal  for  the 
diffusion  of  hterature,  which  will  be  held  in  enduring  remem- 
brance by  the  wise  and  the  good."  I  shall  not  be  so  unwise,  as 
to  attempt  to  add  any  thing  to  the  warm  and  energetic  language, 
and  the  just  and  appropriate  sentiments  of  the  Trustees. 


21 

Geutlemeu,  Trustees,  Faculty  and  Students, — you  will  per- 
ceive, that  in  the  sketch  which  has  been  submitted  to  you  on  this 
occasion,  I  have  made  the  estimate  we  are  to  form  of  the  merits 
of  our  late  friend  and  benefactor,  to  depend  on  a  recital  of  facts 
and  circumstances.  Indiscriminate  praise  and  indiscriminate 
censure  are  alike  foreign  to  ray  habits  and  my  principles.  I  have 
designed  to  avoid  all  overstatement,  and  it  is  not  known  to  me, 
that  the  slightest  merit  or  good  quality  has  been  ascribed  to  him 
which  facts  will  not  fully  sustain.  Whatever  has  been  asserted, 
has  been  drawn  eitlier  from  my  own  personal  knowledge,  or  from 
written  documents  of  the  most  respectable  kind.  I  have  hon- 
estly and  industriously  discharged  a  duty,  which  was  assigned 
me  by  my  associates  of  the  Faculty,  and  which  I  could  not  hes- 
itate to  believe,  was  required  at  the  hands  of  some  one,  towards 
the  earliest  and  most  distinguished  benefactor  of  the  College.  I 
only  wish,  that  the  task  which  I  have  imperfectly  accomplished, 
had  fallen  to  the  lot  of  some  one  more  fully  qualified  to  render 
it  adequate  justice.  I  cannot  conclude  more  suitably,  than  by 
quoting  the  sentiments  of  one  of  our  most  respectable  and  valu- 
able citizens  respecting  him.  *'I  have  had  the  pleasure,"  says 
this  gentleman,  "of  acting  with  Mr.  Horry^,  in  various  appoint' 
ments  in  the  service  or  promotion  of  religion,  charity  and  edu- 
cation, and  as  director  of  a  monied  institution,  in  all  which  situa- 
tions, I  ever  found  him  punctual  and  scrupulous  in  the  discharge 
of  his  duty."*  Of  whom  of  us,  will  more  good  be  said,  when  the 
grave  shall  have  closed  over  him  ? 

*I^etter  to  the  author  from  James  Jervev,  Esq.  J2th  November,  J834. 


22 


jvotes  and  illustrations. 


The  following  documents  are  reprinted  with  a  view  to  their  preservation,  and  to  ilhistralft 

this  Eulogy. 


COLLEGE  OF  CHARLESTON. 

In  Faculty  Meeting,  Vlth  September,  1834. 

Relsoved,  Tliat  this  Faculty  have  heard 
witli  t'eelin^s  of  the  deepest  regret  of  the 
death  of  Eiias  Horry,  Esq.  President  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  this  College. 

Resolved,  That  in  tlie  death  of  Mr.  Horry, 
this  College  is  deprived  of  its  principal  ben- 
efactor— the  poor  are  deprived  of  a  most  lib- 
eral and  sympathising  friend — society  of  one 
of  its  most  valuable  citizens — our  institutions 
generally  of  one  of  their  most  efficient  and 
disinterested  supporters — and  our  State,  of 
one  of  its  most  distinguished  ornaments. 

Resolved,  That  from  respect  to  the  mem- 
ory of  i\Ir.  Horry,  the  members  of  this  Fac- 
ulty will  wear  crape  on  the  left  arm  during 
the  remainder  of  the  present  College  Term. 

Resolved,  That  a  suitable  person  be  ap- 
pointed by  this  Faculty  to  deliver  an  Eulo- 
gium  on  the  late  Mr.  Horiy,  in  the  College 
Chapel,  at  such  time  as  his  convenience  may 
permit. 

Resolved,  That  the  Secretary  of  the  Fac- 
culty  be  requested  to  enclose  a  copy  of  the 
above  Resolutious  to  the  bereaved  family  of 
our  departed  friend. 

Bv  order  of  the  Faculty. 

C.  B.  COCHRAN,  Secrelarj-. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
the  Charleston  College,  held  19th  Septem- 
ber, 1834,  immediately  after  the  Address  of 
Chai'les  Fraser,  Esq.  to  the  Euphradiau  So- 
ciety of  that  Institution,  it  was  moved,  sec- 
onded and  unanimously  agreed  to. 

1.  That  Mr.  Fraser  be  requested  to  furnish 
for  publication  in  the  several  Gazettes  of  this 
city,  a  copy  of  that  part  of  his  Address,  in 
which  he  speaks  of  our  late  President,  Elias 
Horrv',  Esq. ;  and  that  it  be  adopted  by  this 
Meeting,  as  expressing  our  sentiments  of  the 
deceased. 

2.  That  while  we  unite  with  the  rest  of  our 
commiinitv,  in  lamenting  the  death  of  so  ex- 
cellent a  fellow-citizen,  wc  have  additional 
cause  of  sorrow  in  the  loss  of  so  active  an 
officer,  and  so  munificent  a  benefactor  of  this 
Institution. 

3.  That  we  very  respectfully  tender  to  the 
family  of  the  deceased,  our  deep  sympathies 
with  theiu  in  their  sad  bereavement,  and  we 
sincerely  wish  to  them  in  their  affliction,  the 
consolation  and  supportof  that  Great  Being, 
who  can  alone  bind  up  the  broken  heart,  and 
comfort  those  who  mourn. 

4.  That  we  will  cherish  the  memory  of  Mr. 
Horry,  and  as  a  mark  of  our  respect,  we  will 
wear  for  him  the  usual  mourning. 

5.  That  these  Resolutions  be  inserted  in 
the  Gazettes  of  this  city,  and  a  copy  of  them, 
and  of  the  extract  from  Mr.  Erasers  Address, 
presented  to  the  family  of  the  deceased. 

6.  That  a  Committee  be  appointed  to  carry 
these  Resolutions  into  effect. 


Extract  from  Mr.  Fraser'' s  Address. 

"I  feel  that  it  is  neither  inappropriate  to 
this  place,  nor  to  the  subject  of  these  reflec- 
tions, to  avail  myself  of  the  present  occasion, 
to  express  to  you,  and  withyoa,  the  i'celinga 
which  every  one  interested  in  the  welfai-e  of 
this  institution,  must  experience  for  the  loss 
which  it  has  so  recently  sustained,  in  the 
death  of  its  distinguished  friend  and  bene- 
factor, Elias  Horry,  Esq. 

"While  almost  everj-  association  in  our 
community,  whose  objects  are  the  advance- 
ment of  knowledge,  the  promotion  of  reli- 
gion, and  the  dispensing  of  charity,  are  de- 
prived of  the  counsels  and  services  of  a  zeal-. 
ous,-and  ever  faithful  supporter,  we  may  em- 
phatically say,  ice  miss  him  here. 

"  With  recollections  deeply  engi-aven  on 
our  minds,  of  the  urbanity  and  impartiality 
with  which  he  discharged  the  duties  of  Pres- 
ident of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  and  of  the 
zeal  and  punctuality  with  which,  for  a  period 
of  twenty  years  and  upwards,  he  exercised 
the  various  duties  of  an  ordinary  member, 
with  feelings  of  gratitude,  never  to  be  effaced 
for  an  act  of  honourable  munificence,  which, 
in  the  establishment  and  endowment  of  a 
Professorship  in  this  College,  identifies  his 
name  with  its  prosperity,  we  turn  to  that  va- 
cant chair  which  shall  know  him  no  more. 

"Here  let  me  repeat  what  we  have  offi- 
cially recorded — and  I  can  repeat  it  (now 
that  'the  praised  ear  is  deaf,')  with  a  sincer- 
ity beyond  the  reach  of  suspicion.  '  The  mem- 
ory of  such  an  act,  will  not  pass  away  with 
our  transitory  existence.  Ordinarily,  the 
fruits  of  benevolence  perish  with  their  imme- 
diate appropriation — but  in  this  instance,  they 
will  be  enjoyed  by  the  living,  and  be  pre- 
sei-ved  in  their  original  bloom  and  freshness, 
for  future  ages.  As  long  as  literature  and  sci- 
ence, and  the  improvement  of  the  minds  and 
morals  of  the  rising  generation  shall  be  culti- 
vated among  us,  the  name  of  the  distinguished 
patron  and  promoter  of  these  inestimable 
objects,  will  be  gratefully  associated  with 
them.'* 

"Where  is  the  individual  in  this  assembly, 
or  in  our  whole  community,  however  great 
his  zeal  for  the  public  interest,  whose  pride 
could  be  offended  at  heai'ing  the  belief  de- 
clared, that  Mr.  Horry  was  decidedly  the 
most  public  spirited  citizen  of  Charleston  ? 
He  has  repeatedly  served  as  a  member  of  the 
Legislature  of  S.  Carolina.  He  has  twice, 
by  the  unanimous  vote  of  his  fellow-citizens, 
exercised  the  office  of  Chief  Ma^strate  of 
this  city.  He  has  been  snccessively  President 
of  the  "Revolution  and  Horticultural  Socie- 
ties— and  the  Society  for  the  relief  of  tlie 

*  Extract  from  a  Resolution  unanimously 
adopted  by  the  Board  of  Trustees  several 
years  ago,  when  Mr.  Horry  made  to  the  Col- 
lege the  munificcat  donation  of  Ten  Thou- 
sand Dollars-. 


'^ 


Widows  aud  Orplmus  of  the  Clergy  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church.  He  was  Cor- 
responding Secretary  of  the  Agricultural  So- 
cieiy,  and  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Direc- 
tors of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Society  for 
the  advaueeuiciit  of  Christianity  iu  S.  Caro- 
lina. He  was  the  presiding  oflicer  of  the  Cor- 
poration of  the  French  Protestant  Calviu- 
istic  Church  of  this  city,  being  himself  a  de- 
scendant of  one  of  the  most  respectable  Hu- 
guenot families  that  settled  in  the  State — 
and  for  some  time  past,  lias  been  assiduously 
employed  with  others  of  that  congregation, 
iu  preparing  an  English  version  of  its  liturgy. 
He  was  a  Commissioner  of  the  Orpiian  House 
and  of  the  l''iee  Schools — a  Trustee  of  the 
Medical  College  of  the  State  of  S.  Carolina 
— ['resident  of  the  Ciiarieston  Libraiy  Soci- 
ety aud  of  the  S.  Carolina  Canal  and  Rail 
Road  Company;  and  lastly,  after  having 
served  as  Secretary,  Treasurer,  and  Vice- 
President  of  tlie  Board  of  Trustees  of  the 
College  of  Charleston,  he  was  elected  our 
President. 

"In  all  of  these  offices  he  exhibited  a  zeal 
and  integrity,  a  candour  and  ingenuousness, 
whose  rewards  were  as  much  realized  in  the 
advancement  of  their  respective  objects  and 
interests,  as  in  his  individual  honour,  and  the 
graiihcaiion  of  his  own  excellent  heart. 

"  Need  a  higher  tribute  be  offered  to  the 
memory  of  our  lamented  benefactor,  than 
such  an  enumeration  of  offices,  honourably 


assiduous  and  persev  ering  supp(nt,  the  inipor* 
tant  enterprise  is  indebted  in  a  large  meas- 
ure for  its  present  hopeful  and  prosperous 
condition. 

Resolved,  That  we  tender  to  his  relatives 
and  friends,  the  assurance  of  our  sincere  and 
respectful  sympathy  in  their  bereavement — 
and  that  in  token  of  our  regard  and  sorrow, 
we  wear  for  one  month  the  usual  emblems  of 
niouriiiii^. 

Resolved,  That  the  above  be  published  in 
the  diftcrent  papers  of  the  city,  and  a  copy 
sent  to  the  family  of  the  deceased.  By  order. 
JOHN  T.  ROBERTSON, 
Secretary  S.  C.  C.  &  R.  R.  Co. 

At  the  Anniversary  RIectiug  of  the  S.  Car- 
olina Association,  held  IGth  October,  1834, 
on  montion,  the  following  Preamble  and  Res- 
olutions were  unanimously  adopted : 

The  good  that  men  do  in  life,  entitles  theii' 
memories  to  respect  and  consideration,  w  hen 
they  have  passed  from  amongst  us.  VV^orth 
and  honour,  and  active  benevolence  extend 
their  usefulness,  even  beyond  the  tomb — and  it 
is  beautifully  appropriate,  when  the  compan- 
ions and  friends  of  a  good  departed  man  as- 
semble for  the  first  time  after  his  decease,  in  the 
very  scene  of  his  former  usefulness — that  they 
mingle  their  sympathies  in  one  common  man- 
ifestation of  gratitude  and  regret.  The  late 
Mr.  Elias  Horiy,  whose  abilities,  integrity  and 
industiy,  admirably  fitted  him  for  many  im- 


fided  by  him — at  once  attesting  the  respect  I  portant  stations,  fortunately  for  mankind",  was 


and  confidence  reposed  in  him  by  his  fellow 
citizens,  and  his  qualification  for  their  faithful 
and  zealous  discharge. 

"When  we  remember  his  frank  and  open 
character — his  readiness  to  oblige — the  po- 
liteness of  his  conversation — which  never  be- 
trayed the  design  of  displeasing  any  one — his 
punctuality,  his  fairness  and  integrity — his 
distinguished  zeal  for  the  promotion  of  pub- 
lic enterprise,  and  the  cultivation  of  public 
charity:  It  recalls  to  our  minds  the  memo- 
rable counsils  of  the  dying  Wolsey: — 
'Love  thyself  last:  cherish  those  hearts  that 

hate  thee : 
Corruption  wins  not  more  than  honesty. 
Still  ill  thy  right  hand  carry  gentle  peace. 
To  silence  envious  tongues.   Be  just  and  fear 

not: 
Let  all  the  ends  thou  aim'st  at  be  thy  Coun- 
try's, 
Thy  God's,  and  Truth's.' " 

At  a  special  meeting  of  the  Direction  of  the 
S.  Carolina  Canal  and  Rail  Road  Company, 
held  17th  September,  1834,  Dr.  Samuel  H. 
Dickson  bein^  called  to  the  Chair,  the  fol- 
lowing resolutions,  submitted  by  Dr.  Joseph 
Johnson,  were  adopted: — 

Resolved,  That  iliis  Board  feel  it  to  be 
their  duty,  to  record  the  expression  of  their 
profound  regret,  at  the  recent  melancholy 
decease  of  their  respected  President,  Elias 
Horry,  Esq. 

Resolved,  That  while  we  lament,  in  com- 
mon with  all  who  knew  him,  the  death  of  a 
good  and  useful  citizen,  and  an  upright,  and 
honourable  man,  we  cannot  but  be  sensible 
to  the  peculiar  loss  suffered  by  this  Board, 
and  the  Company  whom  we  represent,  in  be- 
ing thus  deprived  of  the  valuable  services  of 
a  zealous  and  public  spirited  officct,  to  whose 


inspired  by  that  energy  of  soul,  win  h 
prompted  him  to  lend  his  every  effort,  em- 
ploy his  extensive  means,  and  devote  his  am- 
ple leisure  to  the  promotion  of  all  such 
schemes  as  were  particularly  adapted  to  pro- 
mote the  interests  of  his  native  State  and 
city — intimately  connected  with  that  South- 
ern interest,  to  promote  which  our  associa- 
tion was  formed;  and  zealously  alive  to  the 
perils  which  encircled  that  interest  from 
Northern  philanthropists  and  over  heated 
zealots.  He  was  an  active  member  of  this 
Society  from  its  first  institution;  and  when  he 
departed  this  life,  left  vacant  the  Chair  of  its 
Vice-President.  We  feel  his  loss,  and  most 
cordially  express  our  sense  of  the  privation, 
in  the  following  Resolutions: 

Resolved,  That  the  members  of  the  Asso- 
ciation deplore  the  bereavement  which  has 
come  upon  us;  and  that  we  will  wear  the 
usual  badges  of  mourning. 

Resolved,  That  we  sympathise  with  the 
family  of  the  deceased. 

It  was  further 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  the  Resolutions 
be  sent  to  the  family  of  the  deceased,  and  that 
they  be  published  in  the  dift'erent  papers  of 
die  city.  HENRY  DEAS,  Presidents 

Francis  Lance,  Secretary, 

At  a  Meeting  of  the  Commissioners  of  Frc« 
Schools  for  the  Parishes  of  St.  Philip  and  St. 
Michael,  held  26th  January,  1835,  a  Special 
Committee  of  the  Board,  appointed  at  a  pre- 
vious Meeting,  submitted  the  followinjr  Re- 
port, which  was  unanimously  concurred  in: 

The  Committee  unite  in  the  public  testimo- 
nials already  offered  as  proofs  of  the  high  es- 
timation which  the  services  of  the  late  Elias 
Ilorry  have  so  well  merited  in  this  corannt- 
nitr. 


u 


Mr.  HoiTj"  became  a  member  of  liiis  Board 
in  1829,  aud  coutinued  bis  active  service:" 
from  tbai  date.  During  the  last  three  yeai"s 
he  presided  as  Chairman  of  the  Board. 
Among  his  last  public  duties  wus  Wis  atten- 
dance at  our  meeting  of  August  last. 

Throughout  his  whole  course  he  was  ever 
aware  of  the  advantages  to  the  State  which 
well  regulated  Free  Cjchools  would  produce 
— zealous  in  the  suppoit  of  any  proposition 
tending  to  improve  the  character  of  the  es- 
tabiishment,  and  anxious  by  liis  persojial  aid 
at  the  examinations  to  ensure  diligent  exer- 
tions on  the  part  of  the  Instructors,  and  to 
excite  emulation  among  the  pupils. 
Extract  from  the  Minutes. 

JOHN  HORLBECK, 
Secretarj'  Boai°d  of  Commissioners. 

At  a  Quarterly  Meeting  of  the  Charleston 
Library  .Society,"  held  14th  October,  1331,  the 
following  l^rcambie  and  Resolutions  were  of- 
fered and  read  by  Benjamin  Elliott,  Esq.  and 
unanimously  adopted : 

Since  tlie  last  meeting  of  our  Society,  the 
will  of  Proviaence  has  removed  from  us  our 
estimable  President,  Elias  Horry,  Esq.  It  is 
a  circumstance  too  honourable  to  be  unno- 
ticed upon  this  occasion,  that  from  the  ori- 
gin of  this  institution  to  the  present  period. 
Its  chair  has  ever  been  occupied  by  intelii- 
geace  and  personal  worth.  Within  this  en- 
comium, the  public  spirit,  the  literarv  ac- 
quirements, and  the  amiable  private  virtues 
by  which  he  was  ciiaj-acterized,  justly  include 
our  laie  friend. 

Immediately  as  he  had  completed  an  ex- 
eelient  academic  course,  he  became  a  student 
in  the  otiice  of  Gen.  Charles  Cotesworth 
Pinckney.  The  sound  legal  information 
and  admirable  methods  of  business  which 
have  secured  so  much  celebrity  to  this  emi- 
nent member  of  the  Charleston  Bar,  not 
only  rendered  him  a  model  to  the  youth  un- 
der his  formation,  but  the  custom  of  the  city 
at  that  aera,  was  most  propitious  to  the  im- 
provement of  the  rising  genei-ation.  It  was 
then  an  established  regulation  of  every  emi- 
nent Practitioner,  that  his  Students  should 
not  only  devote  themselves  to  a  selected  and 
judicious  course  of  law  reading,  but  should 
also  prepare  in  writing  their  own  opinions 
upon  the  most  important  cases  of  the  clients 
of  their  office,  and  attend  minutely  to  special 
pleading.  To  the  habits  of  labour  and  of  ac- 
curacy which  were  here  acquired,  Mr.  Horry 
consitlered  himself  in  no  small  degree  in- 
debted for  his  utility  in  his  future  progress. 
As  personal  labour  was  not  necessarv-  to  se- 
cure him  personal  ease,  his  leisure  was  en- 
gaged In  scientific  researches,  and  his  accu- 
mulation of  literary  opulence  far  exceeded 
tlie  general  impression  of  his  attainments. 
To  him,  literature  in  Charleston  is  under  an 
obligation  Avhich  we  trust  time  will  never  ef- 
face. Not  only  was  he  munificent  in  bestow- 
ing a  sum  heretofore  unequalled,  and  thus 
stimulating  other  citizens  of  affluence  to  a 
generous  emulation — but  the  appropriation  of 
It — the  advancement  of  moral  pliilosoph)*, 
must  also  command  our  approbation.  The 
knowledge  of  man,  is  to  man,  the  first  of 
knowledge.  What  were  Zeno,  Socrates,  and 
the  mellitiucnt  Plato, but  Professors  of  Jloial 
Science? 


His  fondness  for  Iclters,  exinced  both  irt 
taste  and  in  pecuniary  liberalitv-,  therefore 
constituted  Mr.  Horiy  :i  suitable  President 
of  the  Charleston  Library  Society. 

31r.  Horry,  both  at  the  coinineiicenient  and 
close  of  life,  was  delegated  by  his  fellow-citi- 
zens to  represent  them  in  the  State  Legisla- 
ture, and  also  afforded  his  services  to  his  na- 
tive city.  As  our  Intendant,  his  voluminous 
correspondence  with  the  Secretaries  of  the 
Treasury  and  of  the  War  Departments,  rela- 
tive to  the  patriotic  exertions  of  our  citizens 
during  the  second  struggle  for  Independence, 
will  ever  attest  a  knowledge  of  the  local 
concerns  of  Charleston,  and  a  skill  in  en- 
forcing complicated  and  dubious  claims, 
which  honourably  demonstrate  his  devotion 
to  the  welfare  of  his  constituents.  The 
amount  refunded  our  city,  exceeded  one  hun- 
dred ami  serenl'j  thomsand  dollars. 

In  his  cai-iier  political  conceptions,  Mr. 
Horry  preferred  the  discretion  of  Congress 
to  a  restrictive  construction  of  the  Constitu- 
tion, but  as  incidents  in  the  progress  of  our 
Confederacy  evolved,  he  felt  and  sustained 
the  conservative  republican  truth,  procjauned 
by  the  venerable  patriot  of '76,  George  Clin- 
ton, under  the  most  momentous  personal  res- 
ponsibility, that  "Government  is  not  to  be 
strengthened  by  an  assumption  of  doubtful 
powers;  but  by  a  wise  execution  of  those 
which  are  inrontesiible ;  the  former  never 
fails  to  produce  suspicion  and  distrust; 
whilst  the  latter  inspires  respect  and  confi- 
dence.'''' 

Among  the  evidences  of  public  esteem 
which  attested  the  confidence  of  our  commu- 
nity in  Mr.  Horrj-,  it  would  be  unpardonable 
to  omit  his  advancement  to  the  Prcsidencj'  of 
the  first  company  incorporated  to  introduce 
the  Rail  Road  into  S.  Carolina.  The  bene- 
ficial domestic  revolution  which  this  incipi- 
ent effort  of  commercial  cnerg}-  has  already 
effected  among  us  will  excuse,  should  it  not 
justify  the  most  glowing  anticipations.  Dis- 
tances which  required  days,  are  already  over- 
come in  hours  ;  productions  which  a  twelve 
month  since  were  priceless,  are  now  speed- 
ily transported  to  marts  which  animate  the 
activity  of  the  planter.  Our  progress  in 
wealth,  in  comfort,  in  the  refined  enjoyments 
of  social  inter-communication  arc  so  clearly 
identified  with  this  bold  and  splendid  under- 
taking, that  we  may  safely  believe,  the  intel- 
ligent portion  of  our  citj',  W  whom  it  was  pro- 
jected and  is  sustained,  would  advance  to  thia 
honourable  position  no  one  who  wanted  ei- 
ther the  spirit  of  a  Carolinian,  or  the  habits  of 
tlie  man  of  business  and  industry. 

Mr.  Horry  was  a  descendant  from  those  in- 
teresting Republican  exiles,  who  renounced 
the  civilization  of  France  and  the  splendour 
of  its  magnificent  Monarch,  and  preferred  a 
gloomy  wilderness,  untrodden  but  by  the 
wood-nymphs  of  freedom,  where  private  opin- 
ion was  secure  from  the  outrages  of  bigotrj'. 
I'pon  this  circumstance,  he  indulged  an  ami- 
able and  not  a  baseless  pride.  This  portion 
of  the  founders  of  our  State,  have  imparted 
some  of  the  noblest  traits  to  the  Carolina 
character.  If  in  Europe,  we  conternjilale  the 
valour  of  Navarre,  or  of  the  more  lofty  Conde 
— recall  the  eloquence  of  Dubosc  or  of  the 
fervid  Saurin..  who,  even  in  banishment,  im- 
plored Divine  mercy  uj)on  the  grand  oppres- 


^ 


sor  and  Ina  prescriptive  parasites— or  exa- 
mine the  historic  researches  of  the  self-de- 
pendent and  romantic  Priolo,  who,  like  Na- 
poleon's brother,  could  be  induced  neither  by 
public  power,  nor  by  the  paltry  suggestions  of 
ordinary  friends,  to  suppress  the  most  gener- 
ous of  all  correct  feelings,  however  viewed, 
we  shall  find  in  the  Huguenot,  the  hero,  the 
scholar,  and  that  which  combines  both,  the 
high  minded  gentleman.  Duringour  own  re- 
volutionary storm,  whether  in  the  camp  or  in 
the  cabinet,  they  displayed  alike  intrepidity 
and  intelligence.  Their  history  is  replete  with 
instruction  to  Americans.  Their  obedience 
to  the  benignant  Henry,  with  their  insubor- 
dination under  the  arbiti-ary  Louis,  should 
deeply  impress  upon  us  that  a  Government 
is  stable  as  it  is  just,  and  a  people  are  false 
only  when  tJiey  are  degraded — it  admonishes 
republicans  that  it  is  wiser  to  rely  ou  the 
fidelity  of  the  heart  than  on  the  professions 
of  the  lips. 

Many  of  these  French  Protestants  united 
themselves  to  the  Episcopal  Church,  and  Mr 
Horry  thus  became  a  member  of  this  society 
of  Christians.  To  his  friends,  it  will  ever  be 
grateful  to  remember  that  Providence  dis- 
pensed to  him  more  than  an  usual  abundance 
of  her  favours,  and  visited  him  with  but  few 
of  the  sorrows  of  mortality, — that  in  life  he 
enjoyed  the  regard  of  all  who  were  around 
him,  and  that  to  his  memory  every  evidence 
of  esteem  has  been  exhibited,  participating 
in  these  feelings. 

Resolved,  That  the  Charleston  Library  So- 
ciet5'  view  the  death  of  Elias  Horry,  Esq.  as 
a  loss  to  our  State,  of  a  valuable  citizen  and 
beneficent  patriot — to  his  family,  of  a  most 
affectionate  parent  and  husband,  and  a  mas- 
ter, whose  kindness  was  unmeasured — and  to 
our  institution,  of  a  member  and  President, 
whose  urbanity  and  worth  entitle  him  to  oar 
tenderest  recollection. 

Resolved,  That  these  Resolutions  and  Pre- 
amble be  published  in  the  several  daily  pa- 
pers of  the  city,  and  a  copy  sent  to  the  fam- 
ily of  the  deceased. 

Extract  from  the  Journal. 

WM.  LOGAN,  Sec'iy.  C.  L.  S. 

The   author  thinks  it  suitable  to  publish 
several    letters   written  to   him   at  different 
times  by  Mr.  Horrj',  as  they  are  illustrative 
of  his  views  in  founding  his  Professorship. 
CJiarleston,  Oct.  Sth,  1828. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  much  obliged  to  you  for 
the  high  estimation  in  which  you  view  my 
conduct,  and  my  gift  to  the  College  of 
Charleston,  as  expressed  in  your  kind  and 
Very  polite  note  of  this  date,  which  you  sent 
to  me  by  my  son.  God  in  distributing  his  mer- 
cies and  his  favours,has  been  eminently  boun- 
tiful to  my  family,  and  lastly  to  me : — and  it  is 
but  just,  that  those,  to  whom  his  favours  have 
been  bestowed,should  acknowledge  his  good- 
ness,^" rendering  services  to  others;  and  more 
particularly  to  the  community  in  which  thej 
dwell.  I  confess  that  my  feelings,  on  this 
day,  have  been  uncommon  and  peculiar. — 
My  mind  has  always  been  anxious  for  the 
prosperity  of  my  country,  and  particularly  for 
Charleston,  my  native  city:  and  if  my  dona- 
tion to  the  College,  shall  hereafter  prove  a 
benefit  to  our  youth,  I  shall  consider  my  re- 
ward rich  indeed. 


I      I  am,  dear  Sir,  with  great  respect,  your 
obed't.  serv't.  ELIAS  HORRY. 

The  Rev.  J.  Adams,  Principal  of  the  Col- 
lege of  Charleston. 

Charleston,  Feb.  2d.  1829. 

Dear  Sir, — In  reply  to  your  favour  of  this 
morning,  permit  me  to  enclose  you  a  copy  of 
my  intentions  respecting  my  Professorship  in 
the  College  of  Chailestou,  which  I  delivered 
to  the  Standing  Committee,  that  they  may 
report  them  to  the  Trustees.  Their  report, 
I  suppose,  is  entered  in  the  Trustees'  Jour- 
nal. I  thought  it  best  to  trammel  the  Profes- 
sorship but  little,  and  to  leave  as  much  as 
possible  to  the  judgment,  taients  and  learn- 
ing of  the  Principal  of  the  College,  and  to 
the  changes  both  in  morals  and  politics, 
which  in  the  course  of  time  may  happen. — 
I  am  glad  to  hear  that  you  have  commenced 
your  preparations  for  delivering  your  Lec- 
tures, and  I  look  forward  with  great  pleasure 
to  the  good  which  will  result  from  them. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  with  great  respect  and  es- 
teem, your  obed't.  serv't. 

ELIAS  HORRY. 

The  Rev.  J.  Adams,  D.  D.  Principal  of  the 
College  of  Charleston,  S.  C. 

Mr.  Horry's  intentions  respecting  his  Pro- 
fessorship  in  the  College  of  Charleston,  S.C. 

xVlr.  Horry  chooses  as  the  Professorship  in 
the  said  College,  which  is  to  be  called  "  by 
his  name,"  and  of  which  the  Principal,  for 
the  time  being,  is  to  be  the  Professor ;  that 
of  "Moral  and  Political  Philosophy."  A 
similar  Professorship  has  generally  been  at- 
tached to  the  station  of  most  of  the  Princi- 
pals of  American  Colleges.  It  is  further 
Mr.  Horry's  intention,  that  forever  hereafter, 
the  Lectures  delivered  on  "Moral  and  Poli- 
tical Philosophy,"  by  every  Principal  of  the 
College  of  Charleston,  as  "  The  Horrv  Pro- 
fessor," shall  be  printed  and  published,  from 
time  to  time,  in  such  manner  as  the  Trustees 
and  Principal  of  the  said  College,  shall  judge 
expedient,  and  for  its  benefit. 

ELIAS  HORRY. 
Charleston,  October  25, 1829. 
To  the  Standing  Committee  of  the  Trustees. 

Charleston,  June  3d,  1827. 
Dear  Sir, — In  reply  to  your  letter  of  the 
30th  May;  which  my  son  delivered  to  me  on 
yesterday ;  I  will  state,  that  I  consider  "  Moral 
Philosophy"  to  be  that  branch  of  science 
which  treats  of  man  in  his  in  dividual  capa- 
city, and  of  the  moral  and  intellectual  quali- 
ties of  his  mind. — "Political  Philosophy,"  I 
cousider  as  applicable  to  men  in  their  public 
capacities,  whereby  civil  societies  are  form- 
ed, governments  are  established,  and  laws 
are  framed  or  enacted,  in  the  first  instance, 
for  the  guidance  of  each  so  iety,  state  or  na- 
tion, and  afterwards,  to  regulate  the  inter- 
course of  states  or  nations  with  each  other, 
both  in  peace  and  in  war,  thereby  forming 
laws  for  the  guidance  of  nations. — You  have 
properly  expressed  what  I  understand  by 
"  Political  Philosophy,"  or  political  law,  by 
the  terms  "constitutional  and  international 
law;"  regarding,  however,  each  state  in  our 
union  or  confederacy,  as  a  sovereign  state  or 
community. — The  treatise  on  political  law, 
which  I  studied,  was  that  of  "  Burlamaqui," 


26 


%ho  was  Professor  of  Law  at  Geneva.  Since 
his  time,  Europe  has  changed,  the  human 
mind  has  become  in  a  manner  re-organized, 
and  in  America,  the  greatest  of  all  the  repub- 
lics, known  to  the  world,  has  been  estab- 
lished.— A  treatise  on  Political  Law  or  Phi- 
losophy, on  the  plan  of  Bunamaqui's,  or  Vat- 
tel's,  or  of  any  other  distinguished  jurist,  but 
to  suit  our  age,  our  national  government,  and 
the  governments  of  our  states,  would  come 
fully  up  to  my  ideas. — I  will  here  repeat, 
what  I  mentioned  to  you,  in  a  former  letter, 


"  That  I  would  wish  to  trammel  the  Profes- 
sorship but  little,  and  to  leave  as  much  as  pos- 
sible to  the  judgment,  talents,  and  learning 
of  the  Professor:  who  will  suit  his  Lectures 
to  the  changes,  ooth  in  morals  and  politics, 
which  time  will  occasion." 

I   ara    dear  Sir,  very   respectfully,  your 
obed'u  serv't. 

ELI  AS  HORRY. 

The  Rev.  Jasper  Adams,  D.  D.  Principal 
of  the  College  of  Charleston. 


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